Artist: Various Artists Title: “Music In Progress” V2 Label: InsideOut Music Release Date: 4/13/2010 Genre: Progressive Metal Rating: 4/5
I once heard a saying that went “If It’s Free It’s For Me”, and I have to admit that this is totally my mindset these days based on the dismal economy that we are in. I’m not alone in this of course and it seems that at every turn the consumer is watching their spending habits a whole lot more than ever before and this makes preview releases such as this latest offering from InsideOut Music all the more appealing. Even though this is free you might be wondering what would lead you to set aside the time to download these particular tunes and this is especially going to be the case if you have no idea about anything that InsideOut Music has brought to the table over the past few years. That being said let me educate those who might be unaware and say that this label has long been a leading provider of quality Progressive Metal music. For years they gave us stuff like OSI, IQ, Symphony X and King’s X along with Spock’s Beard and Transatlantic to name a choice few and with that being said you can safely adventure forward with no level of fear. Even though I mentioned some of the bigger bands its safe to say that if you have enjoyed this genre in any fashion then you have likely been listening to a number of the other bands on their roster and can attest to the level of quality that they dish out on its behalf. This edition is listed as “Vol. 2” and it clocks in at twelve stunning tracks which will totally do the trick and find the downloader investigating the presented artists a little deeper at the end of the day. This alone is a good thing because if by giving us a healthy sample of their amazing talent, the listeners might very well go out and purchase a full album afterward and that makes it a win-win situation in a very trying time in the music industry. Continue reading “Music In Progress” Vol. 2 by Various Artists→
For their tenth studio album and second on the Roadrunner Records label, the mighty Progressive Metal giant that is Dream Theater show no sign of slowing down with their latest release “Black Clouds & Silver Linings”. For the release like many of its predecessors, they continue the trend of offering fans a number of different types to buy which include a standard jewel case edition, a super premium release with a DVD that offers video clips of them recording the album and a deluxe edition that comes with three CD’s. We opted for the 3 CD version as it seemed to offer more bang for the buck and this one finds the full new album, a second CD of interesting covers as interpreted by the band along with a third disc that presents instrumental tracks of the first CD. The massive scope of the piece finds me needing to break them down one by one and we begin with the primary focus – the bands stunning new recording “Black Clouds & Silver Linings”. Continue reading “Black Clouds & Silver Linings” (Deluxe Edition) by Dream Theater→
Artist: Dream Theater Title: “Chaos In Motion 2007/2008” Label: Roadrunner Records Release Date: 9/30/2008 Genre: Progressive Rock Rating: 4/5
Dream Theater’s Roadrunner Records debut release was the album “Systematic Chaos” and it found the band continuing to adventure forward in the world of Progressive Metal and Rock music as opposed to faltering and disappointing their fans with their move to a new label. After the album was released the band jumped on a world tour and covered a lot of ground with support from groups like Redemption, Into Eternity and Opeth and from these shows comes the new live DVD release “Chaos In Motion”. The double DVD set continues the trend of Dream Theater’s releasing a live concert film for the tour that follows a studio release and such action has become almost a standard for them (not that any of their fans would mind). The first DVD is the complete concert from the tour and it runs about two hours in length and features a number of songs from the new album. Dream Theater always makes sure to focus on their latest release with a tour and by keeping to this model make releasing a DVD from the shows something that doesn’t have too much in the way of repetition from the last go round. The viewer will realize that as they watch songs like “Constant Motion” and “Panic Attack” that there is very little difference between the live DT and the studio DT, for like Rush, the band is dead on the money with their tunes during a concert and there is hardly a note of chance in the live sense. I’ve always been okay with this for I would rather find perfection instead of an absolute mess during a video or concert. Production wise this is a very sound release with a lot of cool visuals and close ups and angles. The guys know they are being filmed but there is limited mugging for the cameras and instead it is just like having the show you were able to see on the tour in your possession. Highlights for me were the songs “Forsaken” and “In The Presence Of Enemies” along with the killer encore number which was a medley of “Octavarium” segments. I felt that this was a nice way to remember the shows that I had attended and perhaps even a great way for those who missed them for whatever reason to feel as though they didn’t. Continue reading “Chaos In Motion 2007/2008” by Dream Theater→
Artist: Dream Theater Title: “Greatest Hit (…and 21 Other Pretty Cool Songs) Label: Rhino Entertainment Release Date: 4/1/2008 Genre: Progressive Metal Rating: 4/5
It’s an amazing title and very tongue in cheek but indeed it is quite correct in the fact that Dream Theater, despite all of their incredible albums, have only enjoyed conventional radio “popularity” with a solitary song – and that tune is “Pull Me Under”. This little piece of historical fact brings us to the bands first ever compilation release “Greatest Hit (and 21 Other Really Good Songs)”, an album that painstakingly digs around for that long revered track and puts it together with a solid batch of other songs that any Dream Theater fan would proudly stand behind. “Pull Me Under” hit the charts in 1992 from the album “Images And Words” and is the opening track on the release. Often referred to as the bands most well-known song, it went as high as a number 10 position on the Billboard Magazine Mainstream Rock charts. It’s not a bad achievement for a band like this who for the most part delivers epic and astounding displays of technical proficiency with each and every release, but then again it is a bit of a surprise that this is the only song that enjoyed such a level of success. The compilation presents the listener with two sides, and while one is Dark, the other comes presented as Light. The explanation of this is that the Dark Side is more of the bands Metal aspect (not a “Luke I am your Father” kind of thing), while the Light side is the more conventional, and softer melodic numbers that they have done over the years. As a collection this double CD release covers quite a bit of ground and gives you songs from the bands sophomore release “Images And Words” all the way up until “Octavarium”. I’m not certain why their debut “When Dream and Day Unite” is left omitted as I still enjoy quite a few songs from that one today but perhaps it had to do with licensing. It’s a really great collection but if you are looking for the bands most epic numbers then you should be aware that none are to be found here. Let’s face it, the collection would span about six individual CD’s if they were to deliver some of these extended pieces in one place. Of course that could very well be the next collection we find released and just imagine how cool a “Dream Theater: The Epics Grandiose” would be. While most of the tracks are the original presentations from the albums, we find remixed versions of three of the songs by Kevin Shirley. These tracks are “Pull Me Under”, “Take The Time” and “Another Day”. Continue reading “Greatest Hit (…and 21 Other Pretty Cool Songs)” by Dream Theater→
You cannot help but be awed by the band Dream Theater who are still delivering quality Progressive Metal after two decades in the business. Their latest album was called “Systematic Chaos” and the tour to support it featured both Redemption and Into Eternity. We made our way to the PNC Bank Arts Center to see it and should you want to know more just scroll on down below to continue.
Artist: Dream Theater Venue: PNC Bank Arts Center (Holmdel, NJ) Opener: Into Eternity, Redemption Date: 8/24/2007 Label: Roadrunner Records
When we last caught Dream Theater it was in celebration of their 20th Anniversary and the whole majesty of that tours’ finale was captured on a live CD & DVD recorded at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall. You can check out “Score” when you have a chance and that’s a solid recommendation without a doubt and a must have for any discerning DT fan. Tonight the band was closing out the first leg of their tour supporting the newest CD “Systematic Chaos”, which is also was the bands debut on Roadrunner Records. The album has been receiving lots of positive praise and shows that the Progressive Rockers are not out of ideas by a long shot. Based on my knowledge of the disk I was certain that this was going to be exciting material in the live sense so the show tonight at New Jersey’s PNC Bank Arts Center was an event that I was looking forward to very much. This time around there would be some differences with the most apparent being the show was NOT “An Evening with Dream Theater” but instead a show that found the band bringing two opening acts on the road with them. The lucky bands for the tour would be Century Media Records own Into Eternity and InsideOut Music’s Redemption. This was a great gig for both of the bands but I have to admit that I was a little surprised about the order that these two openers would be appearing for the attending crowd. It seemed as though Into Eternity was first up and this bothered me since the band has been assaulting the Metal senses of fans in America with a constant level of touring for the past two years. They hit the stage promptly and I was missing the first couple of numbers based on security not letting me inside the venue since the camera stuff needed to be cleared. The guys would do a very short set and at this particular event there were not as many people watching them as I would have liked to see. Continue reading Dream Theater @ PNC Bank Arts Center (8/24/2007)→
